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CGIIU
Wednesday, September 20, 1 972
lincoln, nebraska vol. 96, no. 1 0
Fire hazards remain uncorrected
by Debby Fairley
Copyright, 1972,
Daily Nebraskan
Twelve years ago, the University of Nebraska's two
Lincoln campuses were given a thorough fire safety
inspection by the state fire marshal's office.
Four buildings were condemned. Fifty-one others
did not comply with state fire safety standards. Only
eight were approved as "relatively free from fire
hazards."
That 1960 state inspection was apparently the last
given the city campus.
The buildings were inspected during the summer
of 1960. According to the fire marshal's records, the
University was then notified it had until Sept. 1 to
correct the hazards, "under penalty of law."
Handwritten notes jotted on the reports show
some buildings later were brought into partial
compliance-Morrill Hall, for example, has an OK
written next to one of six hazards listed.
The basis for those scattered OK's were letters
from University officials reporting on repairs.
"For some reason, there was never any thorough
recheck made by state inspectors," said State Fire
Marshal Joe L. Pluta.
Although few buildings have been brought into
total compliance during the 12 years since that
inspection, no legal action has been taken by the fire
marshal's office.
If hazards are not corrected within the time
allowed, and if a further extension is not granted, the
case may be taken to the county attorney, who
decides whether to file charges. Then it is up to the
court to decide whether to impose a fine.
State law provides for a fine of not less than $5
and not more than $100 a day for each violation.
Had the University violations been taken to court
Sept. 1, 1960, and had the court assessed the
minimum fine of $5 a day, the University would now
owe approximately $22,000 for each building still
containing hazards found in 1960.
In many buildings, the hazards still exist.
A preliminary check of the Temple Building,
brought about by Daily Nebraskan inquiries, turned
up some of the same violations cited in the 1960
report, including too-narrow fire escapes and the lack
of either sprinkler or automatic fire detection system.
The 1960 Temple report listed six hazards and
concluded: "From a fire safety standpoint, this
building is in a very poor condition."
Last week's preliminary examination listed 16
safety violations.
The University was given 15 days to completely
check Temple's "potentially very hazardous" wiring,
according to Pluta.
The inspecting officer also recommended the
entire third floor be closed to classes. If that is
impossible, said Pluta, the number of seats per room
would have to be cut.
"Now that the University has been called to our
attention, I think we're going to get every building
checked, starting Sept. 25," said Pluta.
In 1968, a building inspection was made of East
Campus, resulting in a list of 130 fire safety hazards.
Records of corrections of those hazards also show
only partial corrections.
On city campus, except for piecework (fire alarm
installations or remodeling), buildings have not been
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Temple . . . "From a fire safety standpoint this building is in a very poor condition
given a complete inspection in 12 years despite
Pluta 's policy of "liking to check schools every year."
Pluta, who took office 19 months ago, said his
predecessors left him "no word of anything too
hazardous."
Since then, his inspectors have been working their
way down a priority list, he said; hospitals, nursing
homes, child care homes, then schools.
"We've had a University inspection in the back of
our minds for some time, but no, this (the Sept. 25
all-campus inspection) had not been planned
previously," he said.
However, the two campuses are checked every year
by University inspectors, according to Physical Plant
Administrator George R. Miller.
"We review and make new estimates on every
building every year," he said. Then we make a list of
priorities and do what we can with the funds
available."
But there isn't enough, he said.
"It might take $100,000 to $200,000 to update
Temple Building alone," he said. "We have to decide
whether the building is worth the cost of renovating .
. . I think the general consensus has been, no, it's
not."
"It all comes down to piiot itics-do wu put liie
alarms in Temple or do we put a toof on llie Law
College? We do the most critical problems fiist."
In 19G0, it was estimated that the indicated tepaiis
would cost $1.6 million. Refusal to cairy out
previous recommendations was cited by the file
safety inspector as the chief factor for the hitjh cost
of bringing the buildings up to standaid.
Because of doubled construction costs and higher
safety standards, Miller estimated that today's cost
for those same corrections might be triple the $1.6
million total.
"All major fire safety improvements must come
out of the capital improvements part of our budget,"
he said. 'This year the Legislature gave us $25,000 to
work with for both campuses.
"For all of special maintenance costs, we have
$325,000-and that has to cover new roofs, leaky
windows, fire doors. . . a multitude of things. Thete
just isn't much money."
NOVA submits
fund proposal
UNL officials have decided to submit n
proposal to the federal government to
re-establish the NOVA (Nebraska Opportunity
for Volunteers in Action) program, according
to Dr. Ed Kelley, a local NOVA organizer.
Funds for the NOVA program were
suspended this fall because program planning
was not completed in time for the beginning of
the fall semester. The University has been asked
to resubmit a proposal for a January starting
date.
Kelley, who will be responsible for the
development and direction of both the proposal
and program, said the single biggest issue which
caused the federal government to suspend
NOVA funds for this fall was that not enough
students had been recruited.
The original proposal had designated 60
students be recruited for the program, he said.
Federal regulations require that the program
come within 10 per cent, 54 students, of the
proposed number to receive federal funds. Only
44 students had been recruited by the fall
deadline, according to Kelley.
The UNL program will be planned and
directed by staff members from Teachers
College and the College of Home Economics,
Kelley said. Most job locations for NOVA
students will center around poverty-related
problems in the fields of education, mental
health and extension services, he said.
Jean S. Theisen files
for Board of Regents
The secretary of state's office reported Tuesday that Mrs.
Jean S. Theisen has filed as a petition candidate for the first
district Board of Regents seat.
Assuming her petitions are valid, Theisen would face Board
of Regents Chairman Ed Schwartzkopf in the November
general election.
Petitions for the regent seat must contain the signatures of
750 registered voters in Lancaster and Saunders county.
According to the secretary of state's office, if the petitions are
accepted, a paper accepting the nomination would have to be
filed. Theisen already has done this, the office reported.
Theisen, 43, is a 1868 UNL graduate. She is '
mother-in-law of ASUN president Bruce Beecher.